1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to safety and accident prevention, and more particularly, to methods and systems for preventing injuries associated with pole vault falls.
2. Prior Art
As shown in FIG. 1, in the sport of pole-vaulting, a jumper 10 runs to pick up speed, plants a pole 12 in a vault box 14 located just before a bar 16, gets to as great a height as possible with the aid of the pole 12, and attempts to clear the bar 16 and land on the relatively soft mat 18 positioned past the bar 16 and its supporting posts 20. Pole-vaulting is an inherently dangerous sport since the athlete may not clear the bar 16 and may land on hard surfaces 22 around the vault box 14 and the running path. Landing on these hard surfaces 22 is most dangerous if the athlete lands on his or her head. Landing on the shoulder or side is less dangerous, but may cause serious injuries since it may be from heights of several feet. Landing on the feet is usually least dangerous, but may still cause injury due to the height of the drop. In general, once the athlete 10 clears the bar 16, he/she lands over the relatively soft and thick mats 18 (such mats are also usually provided a few feet before the bar 16 on the sides of the running and vault box area), which can protect the athlete from injury if he/she should land in that particular area unless he/she should fall on the head.
In recent years, there has been a great amount of concern about injuries resulting from pole-vaulting. One suggestion has been to have the athlete wear a helmet. A helmet would provide a certain amount of protection if landing is, for example, on the back or on the side and the head is to hit a hard surface or member. However, a helmet does not provide protection from falls on or nearly on the head, which usually cause the severest types of injuries and which in some cases could be fatal. In addition, wearing of a helmet is very cumbersome and interferes with the sport itself and the athletes generally try to avoid wearing them. Also, helmets cannot be worn in the competitions and do not prevent injuries as a result of falls on the side or feet onto hard surfaces.
A need therefore exists for a method and system to prevent falling injuries in general, in particular in certain types of sports, and specifically in the sport of pole-vaulting. Such a device should, obviously be designed such that it would not impede the sport itself. The objective of the method and the system disclosed in this invention is to provide such methods and systems for preventing pole vault and other sports related injuries due to falls.